The War Outside Our Door
by WinterAssassin
Summary: Kíarus has been raised by Dís ever since his parents were killed. He has dealt with teasing and distrust many times, but at least he still has his family to rely on, even if they aren't blood related. One evening, he overhears Thorin talking about a quest and manages to convince his King to let him accompany him on this quest to Reclaim The Lonely Mountain, alongside his brothers.
1. Chapter 1: The Decision

The War Outside Our Door

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Chapter One: The Decision  
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_For as long as I could remember, Dís has been my mother. Fíli and Kíli are my older brothers, and Thorin Oakenshield is my King before my Uncle. You see, I am not of royal blood, as I was taken in by Dís since my mother and father were killed by a group of Orcs when I was just a baby._

_My name is Kíarus, and I am 46 years old, oh-so-close to 47. I was born in 2895. Like Kíli, my beard hasn't started growing yet, but I suspect it's getting close! (It better be. Getting teased way to much.) My hair reaches a few inches past my shoulders, and it is the color of coal. My eyes are a rare green color, which comes from my real mother._

_Anyways, back to my story; tomorrow Thorin is taking the three of us Hunting. We will be gone for a few days, and I can't help but feel super excited. My brothers have been teasing me non-stop because of it._

_But, hey, I have been training for this! And I finally get to go out and show Thorin what I got._

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Dís leaned across the table, swatting at Kíli's elbow, successfully knocking it off the table. She huffed at him, before turning back to the roaring fire, stirring the stew inside. Kíli pouted as he turned back to his empty bowl, stomach growling.

"Kíli, could you go get your brothers?" Dís asked, taking some crushed spices to put inside her stew. The black haired dwarf stared at his empty bowl rather sadly, and stood up. "Fine." He said, stepping away from the table to head to Fíli's room.

Once he arrived, he entered without knocking, and spotted the older sibling sitting atop his bed. "Mother told me to come get you, breakfast is almost ready." Kíli announced, scanning the room to see if their younger brother was in here.

"Where is he?" Kíli narrowed his eyes, he was in here the last time he left. Fíli shrugged, also scanning his messy room. "I dunno, or, I think he went outside." Fíli replied, putting his fiddle away in it's case.

Kíli grinned, "Shall we go find him, then?" His eyes sparkled in a michievous way.

"Aye," Fíli replied, an equal grin spreading on his face as he stood from his bed.

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Kíarus' soft green eyes darted from the bird back to the papers in his hands. He made gentle strokes with his quill on the paper, careful to get all the details of the wings right. He nibbled on his bottom lip as the bird continued to clean itself.

"Kíarus!" The young dwarf flinched, watching crest-fallen as the bird flew away from fright. He lowered his gaze to glare Fíli and Kíli. "Brothers, what an unpleasant surprise." He smiled innocently in a teasing way. Putting the small book inside his bag, he climbed down from tree, landing on the ground with a thud.

"Mother said breakfast will be ready soon, but it probably is ready now." Fíli said, motioning for the two to follow him. The three went down a narrow path that lead back to their home in the Blue Mountains.

"So, what were you drawing today?" Kíli asked, his eyes scanning the area before settling on Kíarus. Kíarus' hand tightened around his bag, as he smiled micheviously. "Oh, just a bird that you scared away." He stuck his tongue out childishly.

"Let's see it, then." Fíli said, cocking his head at the bag Kíarus held protectively in his grasp. The youngest shook his head, his hair falling into his face. "I refuse." He replied before he broke out into a run as soon as he spotted their home.

Once they all made it, Dís has just finished laying out everything necessary for their breakfast. Surprisingly, Thorin was seated at the table, seemingly studying a map. His eyes lit up as the three entered rather loudly, "Ah, perfect timing, boys. Your mother has agreed to let me take you out on a Hunting trip." He smiled at their delighted faces.

"Even me?" Kíarus beemed up at Thorin hopefully, turning to look at Dís, then back at Thorin. The King nodded his head, rubbing Kíarus' head gently, "Yes, even you." He grinned. The dwarflings green orbs sparkled happily.

"Yeeesss! When!?" Kíarus demanded, practically hopping in his seat. Dís hide her smile as she began serving everyone, neatly placing the bowls back on the table.

"Tomorrow." Thorin replied, taking the spoon from Dís' offering hand with a polite nod. "So you three better make sure to get a good nights sleep." He added with another nod, a serious look on his face.

The three brothers nodded, as they all began eating their mothers delicous stew.

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The day went by in a blur, and the sun had fallen to welcome the moon. Bright stars littered the dark blue sky, and dwarves were finishing with their work or dinners, and getting ready for bed.

Of course, this did not count for one particular dwarf. Said dwarf was in his room, sitting on his comfortable bed, restlessly bouncing for entertainment.

His brothers had surprisingly long ago went to sleep, and the house was dead silent. Kíarus told himself to get to sleep, remembering his Uncles words from breakfast.

"Okay, I'll go to sleep... now." Kíarus huffed, his head hitting the pillow. He waited a few seconds, but his eyes were still wide open, and he let a drained groan out. "Come on, sleep. I demand myself to sleep." He whispered harshly, kicking the edge of his bed in annoyance.

A few minutes of elapsed silence, and Kíarus was back in a sitting position, lighting the candle by his bed. He shook his leg as he looked around his messy room, eyes landing on the bundle sitting in front of the door.

"No," He scolded himself. "I already went through that five times." He sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. Sure, the sleep nagged at him, but he just couldn't keep his eyes closed for long.

Kíarus shifted from the bed, wary of the creaking noises as he reached for his small bag. He produced the same book of papers he had earlier, and pulled out the drawing of the bird he was doing before his brothers had scared it away. He ran his finger on the curves of it's wings, smiling a little as he knitted his eyebrows together. He put the drawing aside, and pulled up another paper. This one had writing on it.

Messy writing, mind you.

On this old paper, is where he was practicing his Khuzdul. He was learning from Balin, one of Thorin's old friends.

Ah, yes, Thorin...

Kíarus' thoughts drifted to when he was a child. So innocent and confused.

He grew up believing that Dís was his real mother, and that Fíli and Kíli were his real brothers, but until that one day; when he heard Thorin talking with Balin and Dwalin. He remembered how his heart broke when he heard that he was nothing but an orphan, he belonged to no one.

The teasing, the arguments...

He remembered how warm it was as Dís held him in her arms the entire night, humming to him softly as he continued to cry openly into her fur covered chest.

Kíarus reached up and wiped at the tear that trailed down his cheek with a distraught frown. He sniffled and pushed the paper away, focusing on a blank page. Reaching to snatch the ink and quill from his bag, he knocked over the pile of dirtied papers.

He growled lowly, picking them up with a scowl. He shuffled through them, spotting one he had done not to long ago. A small smile found it's way to his face. It was of his mother, Dís, she had agreed to let him draw her. He had perfectly captured the way her hair fell, her braids neatly hanging from her sides, leaving room for her pretty bread.

Envy flooded his system, but was soon replaced with longing. He shuffled to his desk, gently tucking the portrait inside the wooden drawer, knowing it'll be safe there.

Kíarus stepped away, marching back to his bed rather noisily. He plopped himself on his bed, regretting the choice when it creaked loudly in protest.

Making a mental note to get someone to build him another one, he lay back down, pulling the furs over his head to hid his soft smile.

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Man, I don't think I've seen a story with a male OC :I

So, what do you think? lol Oh, and this is about a couple weeks before the quest of reclaiming The Lonely Mountain, hooray.

~Love me or Hate me~


	2. Chapter 2: The Hunt

The War Outside Our Door

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Chapter Two: The Hunt

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A hand shook him awake, and he hastily looked around his room. Kíarus groaned and rubbed at his eyes, "I didn't realize I had fallen asleep." He murmured softly.

"What?"  
"Uh, nothing." Kíarus' sharp green orbs met Fíli's softer ones. "Huh, well, breakfast is already ready, and we'll be leaving soon." Fíli nodded towards the window, the faint light of daybreak peaking in through the knitted cloth. Kíarus gave a small nod, pushing the blanket off of him as he got his things before heading downstairs.

His gaze was met with his family sitting at the table. Dís was the only one who seemed to be waiting for him, where as Thorin, Kíli, and Fíli were already eating, nearly done.

"Morning." Kíarus bowed politely, smiling sweetly at his mother. He sat himself beside her, and began eating the large healthy portion of his mother's good cooking.

Of course, the three elder males had finished eating, and by now they were all checking over their bags. "Oh, make sure you have _everything._" Dís commented, eyeing her boys' bags suspiciously. "Especially extra pairs of underwear and breeches." She gave a firm nod, ignoring the collective groans of her three children.

"In Durin's Name, Dís..." Thorin shook his head.

"That includes you too, Thorin." Dís huffed at her older brother, as she put their dishes away to be cleaned later.

By now, Kíarus has finished wolfing down the rest of his food, and drank the offered water, nearly choking for a third time. He wiped the excess water from his lips, and scurried over to his bag. He checked it again for the seventh or eighth time, and nodded in contentment.

"Are we ready to go?" Thorin asked, shouldering his bag with ease, his sword by his side. "Oh, I almost forgot." Thorin paused, disappearing for a few seconds, before coming back with a wrapped object.

"For you, Kíarus." He nodded, handing the youngest brother his gift.

Kíarus took the gift in awe, carefully unwrapping the cloth. "Whoa." He sputtered, barely believing his eyes at the sword in his hand.

"I had it forged just last week." Thorin commented, a rare caring smile on his older features.

"Thanks!" Kíarus grinned, pulling the hilt of the sword out to look at the blade. It shined under the lit candles, reflecting the flames off it's silver surface. He put the blade back inside the sheath, allowing Dís to help him attach it to his side so it wouldn't fall or slip when he was walking.

"Alright, be safe." Dís ordered, her stern look replaced with an soft endearing look. "Thorin, you better look after my children." She added swiftly, opening the door for the four of them. Thorin nodded, "Of course, sister." He tilted his head at her, gently grasping her shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. "We will be back in no time." He smirked, stepping out into the light of day.

"Goodbye, Mother." Fíli smiled, leaning forward to kiss her cheek. Next in line, Kíli did the same as he also give her a quick hug.

Dís pulled Kíarus close to her, smoothing out the knots from his partly braided hair. "You, too, be careful. The wilderness is no place for a dwarfling." She whispered, gently placing a ticklish kiss atop his forehead.

"Aye, mother." Kíarus didn't object, as he pulled away from her warm embrace, running off into the brightness of the day.

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The four were crouched low to the ground, eyeing the small group of rabbits not to far away.

"Kíli, as much as I disapprove of your archery skills, now would be the perfect time to use it." Thorin said, his tone held in a teasing manner as he cocked his head at the rabbits.

Kíli nodded, raising his bow as he pulled an arrow from his quiver. He readied the arrow, looking at Thorin for approval before he loosed it. The arrow sliced through the air, imbedding itself into the rabbit's skull.

Kíarus flinched, hearing the crack of bone, and shivered as they all stood. By now, the rabbits bolted away, all heading in the direction of the traps they had set up earlier. It helped that they chased them in that direction, so they were sure to catch a lot.

Kíarus reached into his boot, pulling a small but sharp knife from it. He gave a flick of his wrist, and the throwing knife cleanly tucked itself inside a rabbit's neck. He didn't let his obvious grin hide as he turned to his uncle, not paying attention to where he was stepping.

He clumsily tripped over his own feet and stumbled to the ground, his hands catching himself. A rabbit who was getting confused as to where it should run, had actually jumped right over him, and continued straight on. It would have got away, if it weren't for Fíli slicing it with ease with one of his swords.

Kíarus got on his feet, pouting when he heard Kíli snort with laughter. He turned to look back at Thorin, who also had a sly smirk on his face. "It's not _that _funny!" Kíarus whined, his cheeks red.

"Come, let us go see what we caught so far." Thorin chuckled as he sheathed his sword. The four made their way back to where they had set up the many traps, and indeed, there were lots of rabbits.

Kíli made a face as he stepped up to one he had set up. "Gross, this one is still twitching." He muttered, poking it with the end of his sword. The spikes were inside the rabbits head, which probably triggered it's nervous system or something. Fíli snickered, crouching by his own. "Well, nothing went wrong with mine, brother." He chided, smirking in victory. "What about you, Kíarus?" Fíli called, looking in the youngest's direction.

"Uhh, I'm good," Kíarus replied, poking the dead rabbit. "But I think I also caught a squirrel..." He mumbled, taking the poor squirrel from the spiked trap. Thorin hummed in response, his game already packed away.

"Alright, we're calling it a night, and heading back to camp." Thorin announced, his strong voice booming in the area.

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Kíarus ran his hand on the pony's mane, his fingers getting caught among the tangles. "Goodnight, Dawn. Sleep tight." He whispered, giving his pony once last stroke before he headed back his bed roll.

The youngest child of Dís yawned as he stretched, flopping onto the slightly uncomfortable roll. He glanced at Thorin, who seemed to be taking watch for their first night. Turning around, he made himself as comfortable as he could, and let his eyes flutter as sleep quickly over took him.

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Kíarus woke up to birds chirping and a fierce wind sweeping the plain. He shivered and pulled the knitted blanket over his head, trying to hide from the sun that burned red under his eye lids.

A few minutes later, sleep would not take him, so he just opted for staying awake. He begrudgingly sat up, grumbling quietly to himself. He crankily looked around, spotting Thorin peacefully asleep, his sword tightly gripped in his hand.

A small smile graced his face, as he found both his brothers awake and seemingly roasting something over a crackling fire. "Breakfast?" He spoke, flushing when his voice cracked. He cleared his throat, managing to crawl over to Fíli and Kíli.

"Yes, _well- _no. Lunch." Fíli grinned. Kíarus blinked, staring at the many skinned rabbits, then at the fully cooked ones. "Wow, you two did all that?" He asked, raising his eyebrow in awe as his mouth took on an 'O' shape.

"Yup!" Kíli smirked, his head bobbing up and down with a rather prideful look on his handsome features.

"Did Thorin keep watch the whole night?" Kíarus asked, handing Kíli some spices to put onto the raw meat. Fíli nodded as he spun the pierced rabbit on the stick, making sure to cook every side and every angle perfectly as their mother had taught them.

"Yeah, we figured we'd let him sleep a while longer before we woke up him to eat." Kíli said, a shy smile spreading to his face. Kíarus blinked at Kíli's face before turning to look at Thorin's slumbering face with confusion etched on his own face. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, as he dived for his pack. "I got a good idea!" The dwarfling whispered, tearing his bag apart to get his journal in which he kept everything in.

"What?" Fíli whispered back, looking up from the flames. "I'm going to draw a sleeping Thorin." Kíarus replied smugly, managing to contain his giggles. He pulled the ink and quill from his pack, and crawled closer to their slumbering Uncle as quietly as he could. He nestled a good three feet away from him, comfortable in his position, and he started drawing.

Kíarus made sure to use his time wisely, so he did the basics of Thorin's clothes, before he went into further detail. He currently was working on Thorin's long (majestic) tangled hair. As he drew, he smudged parts of the ink to make it look more dark, for the shading. His green orbs flickered to Thorin's hands, which were tightly holding onto his sword. Kíarus stared at the sword a while longer, and slowly started to draw it into his work.

About twenty minutes later, Kíarus was finally done, and luckily time was on his side, because Thorin was just beginning to stir.

The Kings bluish grey eyes opened, at first he noticed Kíarus hastily scrambling away, over to where his bed roll was. He blinked in confusion, slowly sitting up with a short yawn. He twitched when he felt a small jolt of pain in his hands, and looked down to see that he was still holding his weapon. He dropped the sword so he would be able to put it back on his side where it belonged. He yawned for a second time, and spotted Fíli and Kíli talking to themselves while cooking the last skinned rabbit.

He stood with a mighty stretch, and wandered over to his two elder nephew's. "That smells good." He commented, sitting himself down as he began to work out the kinks in his hands.

"Good morning, Uncle." Fíli smiled in greeting, turning the bronzed rabbit over once more before adding it to the pile.

"'Morning, Uncle Thorin!" Kíli piped up, grinning childishly.

"Morning Fíli, Kíli. And what was Kíarus hiding from when I woke?" He asked, his eyes shifting to the youngest who was rummaging through his bag once more.

Fíli and Kíli shared a look, before turning back to their Uncle.

"Oh, he was, uhh-" Fíli looked up as if he didn't know what to say, but he turned to look at Kíli rather innocently.

"-Just drawing you." Kíli finished, turning to share another grin with his elder brother. Thorin raised his eyebrows, before he glanced at Kíarus. "Might as well show me, Kíarus." Thorin spoke, enjoying how the youngest flinched in the way he knew he has been caught red-handed.

Kíarus stood dejectedly with the paper in his hand and made his way back to Thorin with a pout on his face. He sat down beside the King, and gave him the paper.

Thorin eyed it with a raising brow. "This is actually very good, Kíarus." Thorin complimented, handing the portrait back to his youngest nephew with a nod.

"Thank you, Thorin." Kíarus smiled, crawling back to his bag to put the treasured drawing away.

"Can I ask what we're gonna hunt today?" Kíarus smiled, now sitting in between Thorin and Kíli. Fíli busied himself with handing out portions to everyone, along with their separate water containers.

Kíli got ahold of his, and shook it. "I think we're going to need more water." He said, tilting his over and watching a few drops come out.

Thorin blinked, and nodded. "After our hunt, we can take to ponies and the rest of our stuff down by this old stream I know of. We could set up camp elsewhere." He said, looking in the direction of the stream he spoke of.

"Alright! Let's eat, now, I'm starving." Kíli grinned, taking one of the nicely cooked rabbits to shove half of it inside his mouth.

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*Deepvoice* No animals were harmed in the making of this chapter. (Well, only in Middle Earth they were, sorries.)

~Love me or Hate me~


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